Fire door, screen, and the like for buildings



Jan. 6. 1925. 1,522,130

- w. KENNERSON FIRE DOOR, SCREEN, AND THE LIKE FOR BUILDINGS Filed April 19 l924 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 mmm "mm 4 Q f W n lllllllllllllll llllllllf 1 -l [Illllllllllllllllllil"lllllllll I T I a Ex g} ATTORNEY Jan. 6. 1925.

W. KENNERSON FIRE DOOR, SCREEN, AND THE LIKE FOR BUILDINGS Filed A ril 19, 1924 2 Sheets-Shet 2 'IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII V. mm! Ila 1111111,, 111111": llillllllllllll/ I 1 ENTOR.

BY I ei omvsy Patented Jan. 6, 1 925 @F FICE.

WALTER KENNERSON, 0F ALA-MEDLA, CALIFORNIA.

FIRE DOOR, SCREEN, AND THE LIKE FOR BUILDINGS.

Application filed April 19, 1924. Serial No. 707,682.

State of California, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Fire Doors, Screens, and the like for Buildings, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates in general to fire doors, screens and the like for buildings and has reference more particularly to an in1 proved rolling fire door of the type that is automatically released to a closing position relative to a door way or the like when a fire occurs in the vicinity of the same.

The primary object of my invention is to improve the construction, operation, and effectiveness of this class of apparatus and the preferred embodiment of the structure is illustrated in the accompanying drawings. In said drawings, Fig. 1 is a view in front elevation of the door illustrating its application to an opening to be protected; Fig. 2 is a vertical section through the door on the line 22, Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a detail view in side elevation of the dogging device that cooperates with the fusible restraining structure of the assembly; Fig. 4 is a detail view in section of the dogging device taken on the line 44, Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a horizontal sectional view of the door winding barrel, taken on the line 55, Fig. 1; Fig. 6 is an enlarged cross section of the door winding barrel and its associated parts; and Fig. 7 is a vertical section of the door per se showing its sectional assembly.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, 1 represents a doorway or other like communication, and 2 represents the door per se which, according to the illustration, should be of the rolling type, and for this reason it is made in hingedly connected sections. The door, 2, is suspended in front of the doorway, 1, and maintained in an inactive position, rolled upon the winding barrel, 3. In operation a fusible restraining device (to be hereinafter described) is associated with the winding barrel, 3, so that ordinarily the door will be wound up out of the way and thus leaving the doorway unobstructed. Should a fire occur in the vicinity of the assembly the fusible restraining device will automatically function to release the door and the same will move to an active position, closing off the doorway.

The upper edge of the door is fixed to the barrel by the screws, or by any other means suitable for the purpose.

The barrel, 3, is mounted with freedom of rotation within a suitable housing, 5, which in turn 1s mounted above the doorway, 1,

and the housing is made with supporting bearings, 6, at its respective ends to accommodate the ends, 7, of a pair of shafts, 8, and 9, with which the barrel is equipped. These shafts are indirectly connected to the barrel by a pair of oppositely acting coil springs, 10 and 11. The protruding end of the shaft, 9, is provided With-a ring, 12, which is fixed to the shaft by a pin, 13, and the ring is adapted to be held against rotation by means that looks it to the housing,'5. V

The opposite end of the shaft, 9, terminates in a sleeve, 14, and the sleeve is fixed to the barrel by a set screw or the like, 15. The sleeve is made with a reduced extension, 16, to receive and anchor the spring end. The opposite end of the spring is anchored 'to a sleeve, 17, which is loose on the shaft,

and a collar, 18, behind the sleeve, 17, is

fixed to the barrel by a set screw, 19, but

the collar is not fixed to the shaft.

The assembly for the shaft, 8, is substantially the same as for the shaft, 9; that is, a collar, 20, on the shaft is fixed to the barrel with the reduced extension 21 thereof made to receive and anchor the spring, 10, and the opposite end of the spring is anchored to the reduced extension 22 of the sleeve, 23, which in turn is loose on the shaft.

Each end of the barrel is provided with a guide flange, 24, which may be made as a part of the collars, 18 and 25.

Mounted upon and fixed to the shaft, 8, on the outside of the guide, 24, is a notched wheel, 26, which forms a part of the fusible restraining device. This wheel, 26, cooperates with a dog, 27, on the rod, 28. This rod extends into the housing and terminates in a bearing, 29. A spring, 30, coiled on the rod, 28, is fixed to rotate the rod so as to move the dog, ,27, out of the notch in the wheel. A support, 31, is provided for holdingj the rod.

arried on the end of the rod, 28, is an arm, 32, which extends along the front of the housing with an eye, 33, on its end. This eye is adapted to be hooked or otherwise fastened to a chain or the like, 3 1, which against the cloor guide, 40, to seal the bottom of the housin against flames.

22? \1 Operation.

I The springs, 10 and 11, are coiled in opposite directions and they have a counterbalancing effect on the barrel and the door wound thereon. The spring, 11,, is longer and thusstronger than the spring, 10. The latter unwinds the barrel whenurged by the weight-of the door, and the spring, 11, is Wound upwhen the door goes down. The tension thus placed on the spring, 11, can be, utilized tov advantage when the door is raised; in other Words, it will help relieve the weight of the door when it is raised and also wind itupon the barrel.

{To set thecdoor, it is, of course, first raised and .wound upon the barrel. When it has reached the termination of its upward movement the outrigger flanges, ll, meet the edge of the opening, in the bottom of the housing. The arm, 32, is then raised by the operator and fastened to the chain, at. T he move ment of the arm to this position rotates the rod, 28, which in turn seats the dog, 27, in one of the notches in the wheel, 26. When so engaged the wheel will be arrested, which in turn will arrest the spring, 10, and through it the barrel. The deer will thus be maintained in a raised inactive position.

When the heat melts the fusible element, 35, and releases the arm, 32, the spring, 30, on the rod, 28, rotates the rod and disengages the dog, 27, so that the wheel, 26, is free to rotate and the spring 10 drops the door. T he shield, 38, is also released by this action,

and thesame moves into position as shown in 6. When the door is to be raised, the operator simply lifts the same, and with the help of spring, 11, no unusual effort is required. After being raised a new fusible element may replace the one destroyed, and the arm, 32, fastened into position.

I claim:

1. In a rolling door of the class described, a barrel to which thedoor is fastened and upon which it is adapted to wind and unwind, a housing forsaid barrel, an opening in the bottom of said housing, a door guide projecting into said opening, a shield hingedly'connected in said housing, a thermocontrol for holding the door wound upon the barrel, said thermo control embodying in its construction a fusible element, a connection between said fusible element and said shield adapted to hold the shield away from the barrel when the door is Wound upon the barrel but releasing the shield when the thermo-control releases the door, said shield when released adapted to rest against the door guide to close the opening in the bottom of the housing.

.2. In a rolling door of the class described, a barrel to which the door is fastened and upon which it is adapted to wind, and unwind, a housing for the barrel having an opening in the bottom thereof through which the door passes, a shield in said housing for closing the opening in thecbottom thereof when the door is unwound from the barrel, means for holdingthe door wound upon the barrel, a chain having a fusible element enibodied in the construction thereof connected at one end to the door holding means and with, its opposite end connected to said shield, said connection between the chain and shield adapt-ed to hold the shield. away from the opening in the bottom of the lions ing, and the fusing of the fusible clement adapted to release the shield and likewise the door holding means.

l/VALTER KENNERSON. 

